Kingdom Bloodline

Chapter 528 The Struggle Between Seniority and Juniority
Nia closed the metal plaque and struggled to drag it back into her luggage.

In the brief silence, Thales pondered the story on the Ansett plaque—or rather, the story Megan told through the plaque.

The old priest turned his gaze away from the setting sun outside the window and waited quietly for him, as if he had expected this silence.

"Faith and magic share a common origin; the war to slay saints led to humanity's rise?"

As Thales recounted the story, his mind drifted back to his first meeting with Ashida.

The sorcerer seeks the truth of the world, utilizing its resources and energy with ingenious methods and wisdom to serve a better world.

Megan glanced at him before speaking slowly and deliberately:
“But this is just the beginning.”

The old priest's tone held a hint of regret:
"With the foreign enemy gone, disagreements arose."

"Their attitudes toward gods and faith ultimately led the eldest and youngest sons to part ways and drift further and further apart."

They had two sons, the eldest and the youngest, so that's their explanation.

It's really hard for them to come up with this Abel and Cain-like claim.

Thales sighed inwardly.

"The eldest son of God versus the youngest son of God: faithful, rebellious..."

If you don't know...

"I thought Artanis was going to fight the insect swarm," the prince muttered to himself.

Megan, with her keen hearing, frowned:
Artanis? Who?

Thales looked up and smiled innocently and sincerely:
"It's nothing, just a joke from some northern land..."

Megan pursed her lips, her lips sharp.

The old priest quickly returned to lecturing mode:
"Thus, for thousands of years, under the watchful eye of God and the practice of man, the eldest son and the youngest son, faith and magic, church and sorcerer, have been fighting endlessly, tug-of-war back and forth on different paths and beliefs."

"Wait a moment?"

Thales squinted and interrupted at the opportune moment:

"So, according to you, the difference between faith and magic is because believers believe in God, while mages do not?"

"Can I understand it this way: believers trust in the unknowable, while sorcerers only trust in themselves?"

Megan did not answer immediately; she gazed at Thales quietly, a slight ripple in her eyes.

She recalled that two days earlier, when she had visited Vicar St. ...

He was informed that he would be taking over the duties of teaching Prince Thales and Duke of Starlake.

She still remembered the archdeacon's incredulous shock and perfectly suppressed anger.

Indeed, as one of the fifteen vice-bishops of the Star Realm, Stiliandes was young and promising with a bright future. Having preached and enlightened countless nobles and nobles, he did not want to miss the opportunity to read the Sunset Teachings to the future king of the Star Realm, spread divine grace, and glorify his holy deeds.

Just as Archbishop Rondon was to Tormund II, just as Archbishop Clement was to Mindis III.

But oh, those lucky ones blessed by the setting sun, basking in divine grace.

They always take the light before them for granted.

So much so that we have forgotten where the blessings come from.

Furthermore, it has been forgotten that for believers in God, trials and obstacles are everywhere.

A constellation of stars.

Only after sunset.

"This is the most common and also the most dangerous misunderstanding in history."

Meghan smiled slightly and nodded gently to the prince, her manner mild and polite.
"Especially for those who, without having had the opportunity to understand, have resolutely and resolutely abhorred faith based on hearsay."

Thales frowned.

He put on a helpless expression, trying to exchange a knowing look with Gilbert.

But Count Cassel fell silent, simply gazing at Megan.

"The monk doesn't believe in gods?"

"No."

Megan's expression turned cold.

Her next sentence left Thales puzzled:

"Of course they believe it."

"Believe in God, believe in faith."

Meghan's tone remained steady, but the content was forceful and resolute:
"No matter how many times they deny it."

what?
Thales blinked: "I don't..."

“But the god they believe in,” Megan stopped him from asking, the priestess’s voice now somber and grave:
"It is an existence that is formless, nameless, appearanceless, material, and without substance, yet in their eyes, its power and status surpass everything else."

She whispered:

"They call it—magic."

Thales's brow twitched.

Meghan clasped her hands together, her posture upright, yet her aura imposing:
"But they sometimes use the excuse of seeking knowledge, the euphemism of rationality, the pretense of truth, the pretense of pursuing progress, the sophistry of self-elevation, and the worship of the supreme and unique."

After uttering a series of words that made Thales thoughtful, she remained expressionless:
Does that sound familiar?

Before Thales could ponder those words, Priest Megan's eyes lit up:
"But no matter how eloquently they speak, they cannot obscure the undeniable facts."

The next second, her words were absolutely certain:

"Because magic itself is their god, their faith, their supreme principle, and the very essence of their 'church' and 'doctrine'."

Thales could sense the power in the other person's words:
"In some ways, it is no different in their hearts from our God in our hearts, and perhaps even more so."

"This unfamiliar 'deity' possesses a domineering and cruel nature, indifference and ruthlessness that far surpasses all beings that have been worshipped and revered throughout history."

Megan's tone gradually turned cold:
"The laws are extremely strict, the hegemony is supreme, those who doubt are difficult to question, and those who disobey are not tolerated."

Thales asked in confusion:

"You mean they worship the very concepts and principles of magic as if they were gods?"

Megan simply hummed in response, offering no direct answer:

"As for those millions of believers who were once infected and brainwashed by it—whether they were mages or not, whether they were qualified to wield magic or not—it's even worse."

"They consider themselves the orthodox, and reject dissidents as false believers. They are far more fanatical than the followers of all gods and demons, and twice as hypocritical, yet they are completely unaware of it."

Utterly fanatical, doubly hypocritical, yet utterly unaware of it all...

Thales stared blankly into space.

But at this moment, he suddenly remembered a long, long time ago, when he was on his way from Black Sand Territory to Dragon Sky City, uncertain about the future and filled with anxiety.

At that time, the eccentric doctor Ramon, who was extremely interested in magic, explained it to him like this:
Magic is a meaning, an attitude, a belief, and a principle of life!

Thales still remembers Ramon's expression at that moment and his almost manic tone.

This is what a mage truly is! This is what magic truly is! The most important, magnificent, and precious chapter in the history of humanity's rise, forgotten by everyone!

The words used in sacrificial rites gradually took on connotations of praise and criticism:
“They are clearly heretics, yet they call themselves believers; they clearly have a stance, yet they pretend to be neutral; they clearly have countless prejudices, yet they pretend to be objective.”

"They are clearly incompetent and powerless, yet they insist on considering themselves transcendent human-shaped false gods. While playing with this world and enjoying the adoration of the masses, they smugly say: This is the noble attitude of pursuing truth and studying magic."

Megan's face tightened, clearly showing discomfort, but she still insisted on finishing what she was saying:

"So yes, sorcerers, they not only believe in their own gods, but are also the worst and most fanatical believers, servants and slaves of the gods who can draw energy from their gods without needing to pray or repent, without needing to be baptized or listen to the voice, without needing to perform sacraments or perform sacraments, and are full of energy to the point of self-climax."

The old priestess coughed softly, and Nia quickly handed her a teacup and then gently massaged her back.

The servants and slaves of God, brimming with energy to the point of self-climax...

After listening to the long string of words, Thales took a deep breath, trying to banish the image of the aloof, blue-clad man who automatically identified with him from his mind:
Wow—wow!

Aishida.

It seems...

While slightly surprised, Thales couldn't help but feel a little smug, thinking:
You've met your match.

"So, you're telling me that magic as a belief is wrong, and that mages as believers are evil, with countless disastrous consequences?"

After Megan finished resting, Thales finally sorted out his thoughts and tried to steer the conversation towards something he was curious about:

"And that's why we resist and ban magic?"

But to his surprise, when asked this question, the seemingly devout and averse-to-magic priestess Megan paused for a moment, as if she were thinking, looking slightly confused and hesitant.

She gazed intently at the setting sun outside the window:

"I do not know."

Thales was a little confused:

"What do you mean?"

Megan looked away and shook her head.

"As believers of our God, tolerance and strictness are our commandments."

"Therefore we cannot be so arbitrary as to judge that magic itself is wrong simply because we see unfavorable consequences."

Thales was slightly surprised by the other party's answer.

The old priest rubbed his arms, thinking carefully as he cautiously said:

"At most, we can only say that countless mages throughout history, and countless people who used and promoted magic, did many wrong things."

Megan seemed to have cleared her head a bit, and she nodded:

"But what if so many people who believe in magic have done wrong..."

The elder priest sighed softly:

"Who can say that the supreme magic itself is necessarily pure and innocent, and exists outside of this realm?"

So, I don't know the answer.

"And I must not mislead your answer."

Thales was somewhat confused by this series of judgments that first attacked relentlessly and then let her off the hook:
You've confused me.

Megan turned around and gave Thales an apologetic smile.

“But I can find another angle.”

The priest resumed speaking in gentle, soft voices.

"As I said at the beginning, this is a discipline about people."

"When I believe in my God, what matters is not how great and omnipotent I believe in God—although she is indeed so—but whether I can become a better person after believing in God, and whether I can benefit myself, others, and all things in life."

Megan looked at him with a smile:
“Thales, I think God doesn’t want us to look at them with worship and blind faith. Instead, He wants us to look at each other with tolerance and compassion and to reflect on ourselves.”

Don't blindly believe superstition...

Thales looked at him strangely: How could such words come from the mouth of a religious person?
Meghan pondered for a moment, then sighed with emotion:
"I think we believe in gods in order to make ourselves better."

"Instead of making the gods higher—that is not, and should not be, our responsibility."

"As long as we do not misunderstand God, He will not mislead us."

Meghan took a deep breath:

"So, back to our original question, is magic good or bad..."

"The two sons of God, who believe in magic, come from the same source, but are distinguished by their seniority."

Megan raised her head, but the meaning in her eyes was much firmer:

"As the firstborn children of God, when we believe in God, what we should believe in is the humility and self-reflection, sincerity and pure goodness that we can obtain when we are in God's presence—this is the key to faith."

"As for the youngest sons of God, historically, what has most easily deceived them is precisely the greed and desire, resentment and arrogance that arise after they abandon God and establish themselves—this is the tragedy of magic."

Humility and self-reflection before God.

Greed and desire that lead to abandoning God and establishing oneself.

Thales straightened up without realizing it.

strangeness.

That sounds...so familiar.

He realized once again that he would be wrong to regard this old woman, who answered questions while thinking and sometimes pausing and sometimes hesitating, as a fanatical believer whose mind was only filled with the idea that "God is great".

Gilbert hadn't interrupted her for a long time.

"Whenever the youngest son takes the lead, instigating people to question the gods and faith, and exaggerating his own power and status, what ultimately emerges is the arrogance and ignorance of mortals themselves."

Thales raised an eyebrow: This is a...humanistic religion?
“So what you’re trying to say is,” the prince tried to follow along with the other’s words, which were steeped in religious language, “that magic is not wrong, but those who believe in magic may fall into the ‘tragedy of magic’? Fall into depravity? Sow the seeds of evil?”

Megan smiled.

"More than magic, my child, more than magic."

The expression on her face became much kinder.

“Every era and every person has their own beliefs and their own gods: kings believe in power, merchants believe in wealth, artists believe in love, nobles believe in status, scholars believe in knowledge... there are too many to list, not just magic.”

The king's authority is based on trust.

Thales tensed up.

"But no matter what you believe, the original, flawless faith in your heart can be tainted and unconsciously replaced."

"It may transform from reverence for the great deeds of the gods, from the awareness of one's own insignificance, from the necessity of maintaining humility, and from the countless benefits that faith can originally bring into something else."

Megan said solemnly:
"So, no, it is not magic that brought about the Way of the Young Child, but rather the Way of the Young Child that corrupted those who practice magic."

Thales pondered:

"for example?"

Megan was silent for a while, then began to ponder, her expression gradually changing, sometimes showing emotion, sometimes sadness:
"For example, every time people's greed for external things burns so intensely that it far exceeds their share in this world, when this greed is enough to make them ignore pain and cost, ignore life and happiness, and tear their own souls apart with a swift stroke, pursuing the ultimate and perfect self with fanaticism..."

The ultimate and perfect self...

Thales' nerves seemed to be touched by something.

In reality, Meghan's words continue:
“Every time, when people no longer have reverence, no longer glorify their faith, no longer acknowledge limits, no longer believe that there are things that are unattainable, unknowable, or inviolable in this world…”

Thales suddenly remembered the night his fate changed, his first encounter with Ashida in that card room:
[...standing high above the heavens, surpassing all gods, looking down upon all living beings!]

The priestess's words began to mingle with the voices in his mind, yet remained perfectly clear:
“Every time people stop humbly confronting their own weakness and ignorance, and instead use it as an excuse to justify their insatiable greed…”

A vision of a prison of bones flashed before Thales' eyes, then the entrance to a deep, dark cell, where the eerie emblem resembled a deep-set eye, and the words beneath it:

[The path to... omniscience.]

Megan's sigh drifted over slowly:

“Every time, when people pursue power and omnipotence by any means necessary, believing that this is the only good and correct choice.”

Thales lowered his head and frowned, the fervent words of Dr. Ramon from the past flashing through his memory:
Magic is the sum total of all knowledge, discovery, and truth. The advancement of magic... allows humanity to become more perfect, greater, more progressive, and closer to the truth!

Megan's lament brought Thales back to reality:
“Every time people believe in something and go to extremes, no matter the cost…”

"Then we know that the way of the young should be followed, and the world is not far from falling into depravity and reaping the consequences of its own actions."

Megan was silent for a moment, then picked up the teacup that Nia had refilled.

Thales silently stroked the scar on his left hand without saying a word.

After a moment, Megan, having finished her water, slowly said:
"Two thousand years ago, the unified belief in the supreme god forged the boundless glory of the ancient empire."

"A thousand years ago, the powerful rise of the Holy Sun faith witnessed the eventual revival and restoration of the empire."

At this point, longing and awe inevitably flashed in the priest's eyes.

But she immediately dimmed:
"However, when the utilitarian tenets of magic overshadowed the noble principles of faith, the Church of the Gods collapsed, foreshadowing the decline and fragmentation of the ancient empire."

"The mages' insane and unscrupulous pursuit of wealth brought about the greatest crisis in history. Until the final war, they reaped what they sowed and brought about their own destruction, sounding the final note of the empire."

At this point, Megan raised her head, looked directly at Thales, and her eyes were stern:
"And you, child, have already witnessed the power, terror, cruelty, and madness of those monsters."

Gilbert, on the other end of the line, hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

Thales took a deep breath, feeling a jumble of thoughts:

"Disaster?"

Megan observed him and slowly nodded:
"Disaster."

“And that was just one of their evil consequences—albeit the worst one.”

Despite having received countless hints from Ramon, Ashida, and ancient books, Thales found himself still unable to get used to it when the world's authoritative church told him so openly.

The young duke recalled the night of dragon's blood, and the once-faded stench of blood seemed to return to his nostrils.

It made him feel nauseous.

“Remember this, this is the ‘Way of the Younger Child,’ which begins with pride, goes through countless trials, and ends in regret. It is the devil’s favorite, the darling of evil, the cradle of calamity, and the beginning of misfortune.”

Megan's tone suddenly tightened:
“And Thales, you need to be even more vigilant.”

The prince was slightly startled.

I?
Megan said seriously:
"Because the way of the young child has countless harmful manifestations, it will appear in many guise, changing its name and form, manifesting itself in every era, like a shadow that cannot be dispelled: those who seize power call it survival, those who pursue profit advocate prosperity, those who indulge in desires sing the praises of freedom, those who seek position use dignity as an excuse, and those who seek knowledge appeal to curiosity..."

"Those who are blinded by a leaf will bring about their own destruction; this is not an isolated case, not just magic."

Megan paused for a moment.

Thales took a deep breath, trying to clear his jumbled feelings and grasp the logic:

"but……"

"So, priestess, doesn't your faith, your gods, also become victims of the path of the young child?"

Megan's expression changed slightly.

Thales observed the other party's reaction:

"For example, when people believe in the goddess of the setting sun to the point of blind fanaticism, they suppress dissent at all costs and resort to extreme either/or approaches?"

"Even your current statement, with such a resolute answer, falls into the trap of the 'way of the youngest child'?"

The elder priest remained silent.

But to his surprise, Thales, who had expected the other party to try to downplay the issue and make clever excuses, only saw Megan's expression darken slightly.

"of course."

Nia, who was standing next to the priest, listened very attentively. Thales had no doubt that if she were given a pen, she would immediately start taking notes, detailed and comprehensive, perhaps even including her thoughts on the key points.

Megan sighed softly:

"Although I'm reluctant to bring it up, yes, you're right."

Thales frowned.

"In the years when our ancestors struggled against magic and mages, against the path of the infant..."

"The Ming Shen Gong religion, which spread far and wide, once summoned the temple guards to punish heretics;"

“The generous and selfless Church of the Holy Sun also established a tribunal to correct wrongdoings and uphold the true faith.”

Megan's expression was grave, her eyes wary.
"Fanatical beliefs know no bounds, discrimination is based solely on stance, suppressing dissent, acting with absolute arrogance, and employing extremely vicious and ruthless methods..."

"It is of no use in missionary work, a waste of effort, and only makes countless enemies, spreads a bad reputation, and ultimately leads to the loss of self and heavy sins."

Meghan looked up solemnly, as if the weight on her shoulders was not a ceremonial robe, but a profound weight of history:
"That was the ugliest and most shameful page in the history of faith and the church."

Thales frowned as he looked at her.

“Excessive veneration of a certain thing or path, infinitely elevating its status and position, abandoning reverence and bottom line, despising other paths and choices, and ignoring the wishes and significance of others, is precisely the source of the calamity of the Way of the Young Child.”

"Throughout history, many believers who should have been the firstborn sons of God, my brothers and sisters, have gradually lost their original hearts, forgotten their divine calling, and ultimately tragically embarked on the same path—self-importance, arrogance, and ignorance without self-awareness."

Meghan sighed softly, her words revealing her regret and sorrow:
"They failed the test and went down the path they should have vehemently refused."

At this point, Megan resumed her prayer, startling Nia, who had been listening intently, into frantically joining in:

"Gods are inherently perfect, so perfect that they can even tolerate imperfections—such as their followers."

"The power of the gods is boundless," the priest continued.
"But this does not mean that those who believe in it possess infinite power, supreme authority, act on behalf of Heaven, or speak for God."

Megan's voice echoed in the room, prompting deep reflection:
"Therefore, while we reflect on the calamities brought about by magic, we ourselves must also be careful, reflect, introspect, and ask ourselves questions—we must not be taken advantage of by our most vigilant adversaries and fall into depravity."

"Only by glorifying oneself can one glorify God."

"Being too superstitious about gods can easily lead to losing oneself."

After Megan finished her prayer, she remained silent.

As if the matter had come to an end, the room remained silent for a long time.

Thales tried to pull himself out of his previous heaviness and think about something lighter.

interesting.

He curled the corners of his mouth slightly.

Therefore, according to the teachings of Megan's Ritual from its early days to the present, you not only cannot disbelieve in God, but you also cannot be too superstitious about God.

If you don't believe in God, your world will always be "missing a part".

But if you are too superstitious, there is a "way of the youngest son" waiting for you.

So, what is God? Is He arrogant?
There's one more chapter, still being revised. I should be able to finish revising it and release it around midnight tonight.



(End of this chapter)