You were made to farm, and now you're the emperor of an empire?

Chapter 164 The Gods Are Meaningless
Roman tied the white horse to the foot of the mountain.

He took the two girls up the mountain alone.

Actually, it was Gavier who led the way.

When she led Roman to the cabin with practiced ease, the dirty doctor was squatting on the ground, fiddling with herbs.

"Grandpa Garin!"

“Gerviel, you brought something again… well, this time you’re empty-handed… well, not exactly empty-handed, you brought someone I don’t want to see.”

"presumptuous!"

"Hey, isn't it enough that you took Jett and Dick away? Can't you at least give me a quiet place to stay?!"

"The people of this land have no right to refuse me!"

"Fine, you're the lord, you call the shots. But for Gweil's sake, and for the sake of the gods, let's just give the old man a chance to live."

"I have something to ask you."

Roman walked into the house. This was his second meeting with Garin, but their relationship was much closer than the last time.

The most skilled doctor in Sig Town.

But Roman didn't come for that reason; he went straight to the point.

"How can a qualified witch be trained?"

"do not know!"

"tell me!"

Garin sighed. "Why bother seeking out the forbidden?"

Roman scoffed, "If I don't seek it, someone else will. So why can't that person be me?"

During a brief silence from Garin, Gweil, somewhat absentmindedly, said, "I'll be back in a bit." She tossed her skirt and quickly disappeared into the forest.

Garin repeated, "I really don't know."

"I don't believe it! When did the witch hunts begin? A hundred years ago? Two hundred years ago? Or even longer? What is it that frightens you?"

Aside from the witches themselves, who in this world knows them better than the clergy?

“There’s a saying that’s been circulating within the Vatican for a long time.” Garin’s face was bitter, as if he had tasted ox gall. “The devil lurks in the mist.”

The young lord chuckled and said casually, "If I said your pope was the devil in disguise, and then burned him at the stake, would the devil reveal his true identity?"

Garin instinctively said, "No...you can't do this!"

“But the way you’ve done it, I just find it laughable.” Roman raised his chin. “So don’t try to fool me! I’m the only one in this land who has the right to define others!”

“You should know what’s good for you…” Garin sighed. “Well, ignorance is bliss.”

"These words should be mine to say to you."

Garin has seen far too many people in his life.

Valiant knights, lowly slaves, despicable nobles, profit-driven merchants...

But I've never seen such a young overlord before.

They disrespected the gods and despised the papacy.

His attitude was even more arrogant than that of the Black Iron King, as if he were the most noble person in the world, and there was nothing he dared not say.
Garin wanted to say that even when your ancestors and the Papacy were fighting a bloody battle in the Valley of Silence, they still had to maintain respect for the gods.

But he was certain that he had no reverence.

If you tell him about your ancestors, he'll just say that your ancestors are not worthy of emulation and call them idiots and tell them to go to hell—he doesn't care at all that everything he has now comes from the blessings of his ancestors.

Look! Look!
How did such a rebellious person, who has no respect for God and the Father, manage to secure his position?

But his territory was booming, and at an alarming rate.

"What if I said the witches aren't devils, and what about the travelers who wander into the fog? Have you heard the legend of the Azure Moon? When the fog is thick, the best thing to do is stay put. The banshees in the fog only hunt moving life... Judging from your expression, you don't know this. No wonder, why would the Archmage tell you all this? That's why the people of the Azure Moon stay still in the fog, while the people on other lands don't care about it at all."

So who is the devil?

"Listen to me, child... forgive me for calling you that. Anyway, let's not dwell on this. Can you bear to let Gweil get lost in the fog all by herself?"

"Everyone gets lost, why can't it be Gweil? Let me tell you, everyone dies eventually, but her death must have meaning, otherwise it's a wasted life... The devil you're talking about, is it a demon?"

"Damn it! You guessed it this time."

"The answer is in the riddle itself... How boring, I thought you were talking about the gods and demons."

Garin was astonished; "Why would you think that?"

Who would regard gods and demons as imaginary enemies? He thought, his heart suddenly trembled, and a chill ran down his spine.

"It's nothing," Roman said after a moment's thought.

All he knew was that the Oak Duke's army guarded the Baal Mountains and the Underworld Sea. The Duke was also known as the Underworld Sea Watcher, and the Conquerors sent him to resist the demon invasion.

But that coast remains calm to this day.

More than a hundred years have passed, and there is no trace of the demon race in that land. At most, they fight the Northern Ice Pirates—those unlucky guys go to great lengths to travel thousands of miles into the Underworld Sea and plunder along the coast, hoping to replicate the traditions of the northern coast.

but……

How ridiculous! They robbed a garrison duke.

Those guys are really fearless.

“I don’t care about all that, you have to train my witches,” Roman said without hesitation.

The old man's bushy beard twitched, and he angrily retorted, "What do you take me for?"

I'm a clergyman, at least show me some respect!

Roman scoffed, "I don't think you're an idiot!"

Upon hearing this, Garin was both amused and exasperated.

"Witch hunts have intensified within the Vatican in recent years, sparking endless debates between the Pope and cardinals. One faction advocates burning witches at the stake, while the other advocates burning their families as well, arguing that this ensures the purity of the human bloodline. All documents related to witches have been destroyed—"

"So how could I possibly know about the witches' lineage?"

Roman suddenly asked, "Which faction were you on before?"

“My previous position had nothing to do with witches.”

"And now? You've left the Papacy, so why are you still following the rules?"

“I’m just a hermit now. If I could teach Gavial magic, I would have done so long ago. But that child isn’t normal—I mean her abilities. You must have noticed it too, otherwise you wouldn’t have come to me. But let me tell you, not everyone can manipulate fate! This is the realm of the gods…”

Roman asked with dissatisfaction, "What is there about those gods that deserves our respect?"
“I have lived in this world for seventeen years, while your age is probably the reverse of that number. Don’t you have a deeper understanding of this fantastic land than I do?”
“I actually have great respect for wise men, so as a wise man, you must also know what our land is like—civilized yet barbaric, impoverished, and lacking in resources. What have the gods done about this?”

Roman said,
“I don’t like talking to believers. Take Gweil for example, even if she did nothing, the Vatican would still burn her at the stake. Devout believers thought she deserved to die.”

"There's no logic to this, but I strongly agree with this illogical logic."

"Because that's how times are, and therefore, the more devout the believer in the Vatican, the more deserving of death I see them as. Do you think I'm being unreasonable?"

Garin turned his face away, and Roman burst into laughter.
"Alright, I don't mean anything by this, and I don't hate the gods. They are like fleeting clouds to me. But! You dirty old man! You have to admit one thing."

"The gods are meaningless to the progress of civilization!"

(End of this chapter)