Xingyue, is Xiaokai also considered Kai?

"What I mean is, I have a name. To be honest, I'm fed up with you. You're always acting strangely. After spending so much time with you, I've had enough. Your temper is inexplicable. I'm telling you clearly, I hate you. We're no longer friends—"

Before Novia could finish speaking, Albion, just like before, lost his temper and pounced on her again.

She opened her mouth wide, revealing sharp teeth, and bit off a chunk of flesh from Novia's stomach. Blood and flesh flew everywhere, and the lower half of her face was stained red with the splattered blood, but she was still not satisfied. After swallowing, she bit even deeper.

Seeing this, Novia could only silently accept the pain of his body being torn apart, after all, that was his plan.

When Albion heard Novia say, "I hate you," he felt his heart pounding louder and louder.

I am his unique and unparalleled brilliance, he said that, the first time anyone had ever said that to me.

From that moment on, a completely different feeling, one that had never been felt before, began to sprout deep within Albion's heart.

It wasn't fear, aversion to trouble, or a desire for control. It was something more personal, warm.

But now, now—

"Novia."

Just uttering that name sent a sweet pain through Albion's heart.

"Don't hate me, I don't want to eat you."

Despite saying those words, Albion continued to bite, immersed in the flowing hot blood.

“It’s alright.” Novia, enduring the excruciating pain, cradled Albion’s head and smiled. “Don’t be shy. If this satisfies you, then there’s no problem.”

"Novia, please, don't hate me, I won't be willful anymore."

The silver-haired girl trembled more and more violently, and finally raised her head, a clear drop of water running down her bloodied lips.

Seeing Albion like this, Novia breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that she had finally persuaded Albion, and that she would probably not be angry all the time in the future, and her attitude would change.

"No problem, as long as you behave well in the future, I won't say such things again."

Novia creates a warm atmosphere with her gentle voice, which is one of her strengths.

"Um...aren't you going to get some water or something?"

Albion, nestled obediently in Novia's arms, said timidly.

'You're the one who should be drinking water to wash away the taste of blood from your mouth, right?'

Novia's words welled up in his throat but couldn't come out of his lips, because Albion pounced on him again, sitting on his waist, holding his hands in his own, his golden eyes revealing desire, yet his face still looked timid.

"Yes, I know you'll definitely drink it, because you don't like the human taste in your mouth, right? So you need to wash it off, otherwise you'll be defiled. It feels good, doesn't it? I'll completely mask her taste like that..."

The silver-haired girl gently licked her lips, stuck out her tongue, and immediately revealed a pleading expression like a cat. She buried her head in the young man's chest, first licking away the blood from the wounds she had previously inflicted on Novia and using magic to heal her. Then she tried to clean the scent of Nero from Novia's mouth.

.......

"Hey, hey, hey, the teacher took leave?! Why is that?"

When Nero, who had just become emperor, heard the report from his minister Seneca, his previously cheerful expression instantly fell.

Although he had handled the reported matters diligently, he went back to bed and became sullen as soon as it was over.

She had originally planned to see her teacher, Novia, early in the morning, which would put her in a good mood all day.

"How could this be? It shouldn't be like this. The teacher has never asked for leave before. Could it be because—"

Just as Nero was feeling confused, she suddenly remembered the kiss she had shared with Novia in the Pantheon during her coronation ceremony the day before. She felt a little embarrassed thinking about her own boldness, but she never expected her teacher to react this way.

"Hmm, so the teacher is so innocent! Oh, hehe, I didn't expect her to be as cute as a little animal, hehe..."

Nero, whose mood instantly improved, developed an appetite and summoned Locusta, asking the green-haired girl who was in charge of the palace's food safety to cook her mushroom soup.

For some reason, Nero now has a particular fondness for mushroom dishes, and she also trusts Locusta completely, as it was arranged by her teacher.

Speaking of which, the teacher has been giving me less poison lately. Is it because I've been drinking it for too long and the poison has lost its effectiveness? That won't do. As the teacher's disciple and the person he values ​​most, I can't let him get caught up in this dilemma.

When the teacher gives it to me again next time, I'll ask Locusta to help me research a more potent one. That way, the teacher will definitely praise me!

“Mmm mmm........”

Nero couldn't help but laugh out loud while drinking the mushroom soup.

"Your Majesty, why did you suddenly laugh?"

Locusta, standing to the side, looked puzzled, not understanding why the emperor was laughing as he drank. Was it because it tasted so good?

"Because I came up with a great way to get the teacher to praise me!"

055: I'll be very sad if I don't see my teacher for a long time.

"Your Majesty, from this day forward, may the current Governor of Britain, Lucius Longinus, be appointed as the leader of the Royal Guard?"

Somewhere in the Roman palace, all kinds of flowers are planted, and when the weather is warm and the flowers bloom, the place is surrounded by an intoxicating fragrance.

"absolutely okay!"

The girl with dazzling blonde hair nodded, smiled, and didn't say much.

Regarding this suggestion, Nero believed that someone as capable as her teacher, who was sincerely devoted to Rome and the good of everyone, would never treat her, the most important person in his life, badly.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Bruce, the commander of the Janissaries appointed by Claudius, had already requested retirement after Nero's successful ascension to the throne. Novia knew that he wanted to protect himself, but seeing that he was sensible and would not cause any trouble, she let him go.

As for control of the Praetorian Guard, Novia did not only intend to have overt control. Making Lucius the leader was also to use the 'Christian' faith to prevent these 'elite' men, who had been carefully selected from within the Roman Empire, from falling into a life of debauchery and to have faith in Christianity and Rome.

The current Imperial Guard hasn't developed to the point of being lawless as it will become later. As long as Lucius takes the time to reset it, it's perfectly acceptable.

Take Lucius's British Legion, for example. Under his training, it had become one of the most powerful legions in the Roman Empire. When Novia pacified the province of Judea, the British Legion was the unit that contributed the most.

“I’m saying, teacher, when we’re alone, there’s no need for you to call me Your Majesty or anything like that. Even though my status has changed, the essence is still the same. I didn’t use the word ‘Yu’ in my speech.”

She rested her chin on her hand and said, seemingly somewhat displeased.

Nero had always felt a sense of pleasure when she helped her teacher and saw Novia smiling at her and calling her name, but now that Novia was just calling her "Your Majesty," she felt nothing at all.

"Your Majesty, this is a necessary courtesy."

“Alright, since you like it this way, teacher, then that's fine too.” Nero nodded, not insisting further, and continued with a smile.

"Why did you take the day off yesterday, teacher? Was it because I wasn't feeling well? Well, actually, I also felt that going straight to kissing right away was too fast, but apart from the lips... no, actually I was very happy, very happy to have such physical intimacy, but... um... I didn't mean that you should... how should I put it... hehe..."

Nero's initially confident smile grew increasingly weak as he spoke, and he suddenly became red-faced and flustered.

This was not only because the panicked expression Novia was expecting did not appear, but also because it reminded her of something more intimate.

As for Novia, yesterday he finally experienced what a real dragon tongue tasted like. It was like a lizard's tongue, so long. However, Albion probably only saw Novia kissing Nero before and hadn't seen anything else, so he just kept kissing.

Judging from the results, Novia's deliberate provocation of Albion was very effective; at the very least, Albion's attitude towards him will change significantly from now on.

But Albion is nowhere to be seen, as if he's vanished. Novia tried to speak to him in her mind, but there was no response. She was also puzzled: wasn't Albion currently a spirit? He was practically a vessel spirit, so why did he have a real tongue? It was strange. Could he be in the process of acquiring a physical body? But what could be the reason for that...?

"By the way, teacher, could you accompany me to the Greek peninsula sometime in a while? The ministers have suggested that the Isthmus of Corinth be excavated on the Greek peninsula, so I would like to participate in the groundbreaking ceremony."

Because Novia didn't react to her words, Nero almost thought she had upset her teacher, which would be bad. So she quickly suggested something that she thought would definitely make her teacher happy.

Moreover, building a canal on the Isthmus of Corinth could improve the Roman Empire's commercial control over Greece, which would also benefit the country and its people.

Newly enthroned Nero would randomly distribute various gifts to the people every day, including food, clothing, livestock, and even gold, silver, jewels, and real estate. He would also demand free bread for influential veteran soldiers every month, and pay annual salaries to impoverished elders in recognition of their past contributions. Furthermore, he funded the construction of massive ports in old colonial cities…

In short, he presented himself as an enlightened monarch.

"I'm afraid that won't work, Your Majesty. As you know, the heads of all the churches across the country will be gathering in Rome in a few days, and I simply cannot get away."

On the day Nero ascended the throne, Novia persuaded her to announce that all the leaders of Christian churches throughout the country would come to Rome to discuss matters with him, the leader, to pass on the newly compiled New Testament, to unify the doctrine, and to rename Christianity as the Church of the Church.

Although with Novia's current prestige, there's really no need to consult with other believers, the necessary procedures still need to be followed, and no one is likely to object.

"Your Majesty, you can go alone, right? Haven't you always liked the people of Rome?"

When asked, Nero pondered.

If I had to choose between liking and disliking, I would naturally like it immensely, but—

"In that case, I won't see you for a long time, teacher."

"...Then you should also attend the Christian conference later."

"Hey, is that alright?! Teacher, I'm the emperor, even though I've been a Christian for a long time."

She jumped up from her chair with a whoosh and leaned forward as if she were slamming on the brakes.

"But it will still have some impact. If I go, it wouldn't be good if it caused you trouble, teacher..."

“I don’t think so, and I don’t mind at all.” Looking at the hesitant blonde girl, Novia then made her point more clearly, “Besides, Tius of Rome is a saint written in a book, so she’s a very important figure, right?”

"Holy Maiden... Yes... I am still the Holy Maiden..."

"I see," the blonde girl thought.

She was a very important person to her teacher, and that alone made her overjoyed.

When their eyes met, Novia smiled, and Nero couldn't help but smile back naturally.

That's really great.

056: The Covenant of Novia and the Prophecy of the Revelation

The Christian world conference is known as the Ecumenical Council.

A church meeting is a gathering of representatives from the universal church or a local church to discuss church affairs and reach a consensus.

There are many types of church meetings, such as episcopal councils, patriarchal councils, or local councils, but the one that is a global Christian council is known as the ecumenical council.

Now, Novia has officially brought forward this conference, which was originally scheduled to begin three hundred years later in the Roman Empire, by three hundred years.

For Novia, the Christianity he brought to its glory was unlike that of later eras, where years of hiding and exile led to differing understandings of the faith among Christians throughout the Roman Empire, leaving interpretations entirely to the bishops of local churches.

This also led to the formation of what was originally the first ecumenical council in history, resolving the differences among bishops regarding the relationship between Jesus and the Father, as well as issues concerning Arian doctrine, establishing Easter, dealing with Miltiadesian separatism, and recognizing the superior status of the Bishop of Rome over bishops in other regions...

However, in the first century AD, when the doctrines of Christianity were propagated by Novia and she was the undisputed leader of Christianity, none of these issues were problems or had even occurred yet, except for the establishment of Easter.

It could be said that Novia had no need to convene a council; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe it as a one-man show. Even without such a council, his words would have been binding on the Church throughout the Roman Empire.

Novia chose to convene the ecumenical council not only to spread the New Testament, but also to set an example for future generations: that no matter what, even Christians in the highest positions must convene an ecumenical council to make important decisions.

After all, Novia's prestige is too high now. If he doesn't set an example in this way, it may indirectly lead to the pope later establishing a one-man rule.

In an organization of such a large size, corruption is inevitable, and prolonged inaction is enough to bring it down. Therefore, necessary debate is essential. As for whether there will be a break with the original history, Novia doesn't care at all. Whether there is a break or not, as long as its basic ideas remain the same as he advocates, such as relieving the poor, loving one another, caring for the weak, and treating children well, that's enough.

If even this point is abandoned, it's better to be destroyed than to split apart.

"We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, the Creator of all things, visible and invisible."

In a facility similar to the Senate, Novia stood alone in the very center, speaking to the head of the Church throughout the Empire.

Everyone listened in utter silence, not daring to utter the slightest sound, while Nero entered in a dazzling red robe and sat at the back as an observer of the meeting.

"We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of the Father, and is the only begotten, that is, born of the essence of the Father."

The decorations on the walls fully embody the majesty of this place, and the silence makes it an even more solemn space.

"God who is from God, light who is from light, true God who is from the true God, begotten and not created, being of the same substance as the Father. All things in heaven and on earth were created through him to sustain them. He came into the world to save us, became flesh, suffered, rose again on the third day, and ascended into heaven."

After this, Novia established the date of Easter, which was the first Sunday after the spring equinox, the first full moon, as the day of Jesus' resurrection, independent of the Hebrew calendar.

"The love of the Lord is everything in the world. We should not speak of the glory of the Son of Man on our own. The Son of Man left us a sacred, solemn and dignified place, which we should use to care for everything. Therefore, from now on, we should be called the Church of the Holy Church."

As for Novia's suggestion to change the name of Christianity to the Church of the Holy Church, although the others were somewhat puzzled, they still agreed, because after all, it was just a name, and perhaps Novia had her own unique understanding, they thought.

As the meeting drew to a close, Novia was naturally elected by everyone as the leader of the newly renamed Holy Church. Although Novia's position had always been this, it was a tacit acceptance that didn't need to be said. Now, however, it was truly on the table.

However, the question of what title to use was discussed for a long time, and finally Nero, who had been observing the scene, came up with the answer—

pope.

It received unanimous approval.

Before the meeting officially ended.

"The Church, what the Son of Man entrusted to me, is our faith, and at the same time, an inviolable covenant, an inviolable vow, or a condition that binds us to one another."

"We exchanged verbal agreements and swore an oath with everything we had."

"It is precisely because one person cannot fight alone that we need to unite our strength. At all times, our interests as human beings are aligned. We must eliminate heretics who harbor malice towards humanity. If you find something disagreeable about fellow believers, please close your eyes and always make good use of their strengths."