The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I'm a "Farmer", Not a Demon King! ~ - Chapter 539

The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I’m a “Farmer”, Not a Demon King! ~

Chapter 539   For myself after all

So, yeah, because of that, I thought that those who believe in religion would quietly obey as long as they hear “grateful teachings”…

“Faith, in the end, is just about being happy. If you realize you can’t be happy, then that thing becomes garbage.”

“Huh? Oh, Gran—Carmena. Did you come over here?”

“The instructions from over there are finished. I’ve been watching for a while, but now that things are flowing, I don’t need to be there unless something drastic happens.”

Since granny is currently not in her “Granny” guise, it was forbidden to call her Granny outside.

I can’t help but wonder about the fact that, as a king, it’s “forbidden” for me to call her granny when she’s my subordinate, but well, that can’t be helped. It’s a reason I can understand.

But to me, she’s still just “Granny,” so calling her Carmena feels quite strange.

Anyway, leaving that aside, what was it again… Oh yeah, it was about faith.

They say religion is a refuge for the heart. A refuge is essentially support for those who would collapse without it. They cling to it because they don’t want to collapse.

And that desire not to collapse is essentially a desire to be happy.

‘I’m suffering right now, but if I believe in the teachings, someday I’ll be saved. It should be that way. After all, I’m going through so much pain. So, it would be strange if I’m not saved.’

With that mindset, those who have experienced happiness at least once think, ‘I’ve been saved. It’s because I believed in the teachings. So, I have to save others too. By doing good deeds, I’ll surely be saved again. Good things should happen—no, they will definitely happen.’

While I, who think, ‘If you have time to cling to God and believe, why don’t you make efforts to climb up on your own?’ can’t understand such beings, I believe that’s generally the underlying thought.

“There! Done—! And this… take that! Heal!”

There might be some who genuinely want to save people from the bottom of their hearts. Especially in a world where individual efforts can yield ‘power’ even in the face of such imminent danger to life.

But they are very few. Such thinking doesn’t represent the majority.

In other words, despite claiming to be for the masses, religion ultimately consists of individuals who prioritize their own interests.

So, I think Granny’s words about being unable to find happiness are correct.

“Maybe you can maintain your faith with just some pain and suffering, but in a truly life-threatening situation like this, where you’re slowly pushed to the brink of death as if being strangled by cotton, rather than the fleeting pain, it’s the slow, creeping fear that breaks even the slightest bit of faith. The slow approach of terror is much more terrifying than simply being stabbed with a knife.”

Well, in a way, it’s like being tortured. The current situation in this country.

Enduring torture requires talent. Enduring suffering even when it’s painful is not something you can do with half-hearted determination.

So, when they say faith breaks, I can understand—halfway, at least.

“But, you know? Even in religion, they don’t hesitate to commit suicide while talking about ‘martyrdom,’ right?”

That’s right. That’s the annoying part about religion. Just like knights who pledge loyalty to their masters, they’re willing to turn even their own lives into weapons if it serves their purpose.

“Hey, why is there an elf here? Huh?”

“Huh? Why… oh! You’re injured! Hehe, I can see through things, you know. Take this! There!”

“Huh? Hey, what are you—hey! Huh? …The injury disappeared?”

“Just a little more until the setup is complete, so everyone else, please wait!”

Would those individuals attack the church, the object of their faith, just because they’re about to die?

“Well, it depends. But that’s only if it’s done ‘by their own will.’ In a situation like this famine where it’s not by one’s own will, and where death itself doesn’t have any meaning to begin with, anyone would naturally not want to die. No matter how much they’re told to die for their faith, if they don’t understand the meaning, they won’t die. They won’t want to die if they don’t see any value in it. Such feelings lead to the denial of faith. ‘Is there any meaning in a faith that makes me die in vain like this?’ And once you start denying your faith like that, you become fragile.”

The difference between a death welcomed by one’s own will and a death with no meaning in being killed by someone else. It’s natural that the emotions one harbors in those situations would be different.

“And what you’re talking about is probably for those ‘deeply committed’ folks, right? Most ordinary believers don’t have that kind of commitment. They probably wouldn’t even consider risking their lives.”

Well, that makes sense. If religion is supposed to be a tool for one’s happiness, then it’s meaningless if you end up dead because of it.

“Well, those genuinely crazy fanatics who are completely devoted to their faith are hopeless. But they’re a minority, and in most cases, faith fades away in situations as dire as starvation.”

In the end, depending on our actions, mine and the king’s, there’s a possibility that the populace could resent the religion, their spiritual refuge, and instigate a rebellion.

It’s fine if they stir up trouble, but it’s troublesome if they do it while we’re not paying attention. So, we need to make sure we understand the situation well.

grany had been talking about the fear and fragility of religion for a while, but upon hearing my nonchalant words, she sighed in exasperation.

Maybe she was giving me a ‘lesson’ about religion. After all, for some reason, I seem to be revered in some circles too.

…Ah, and there’s Lilia too. You could say she’s worshipped, if anything. After all, there are already plenty of elven followers among my companions.

If I’m going to continue dealing with her, I need to learn about what might happen with her and what I should do. So, maybe that’s why there was this ‘talk about religion.’

And just as I was thinking about that, something came to mind.

“Uh, by the way, where’s Lilia?”

I felt like I heard some weird voices here and there during the conversation. It was hard to tell amidst the busy cooking activity, with voices coming from all directions, but I’m pretty sure it was Lilia’s voice.

…I don’t like the idea of being able to recognize only her voice.

“If it’s Lilia, she’s not helping with the cooking over there.”

Sofia turned around to indicate where Lilia would normally be, but Lilia wasn’t there. There were just elves and soldiers from the Holy Kingdom busy with the cooking, along with the citizens lining up for food.

Where did that Lilia go? She should have several escorts with her, so she shouldn’t just wander off somewhere…

“Everyone! Just a little longer. I mean it, just a little longer, so please wait a bit more!”

“Uwaaah!”

I heard voices.

No, not voices, screams?

Feeling a sense of foreboding from those screams, I glanced at Sofia and the others.

Everyone there had the same expression, a mix of annoyance and exasperation.

Only Granny seemed to be enjoying herself, smiling. But… isn’t it me who’s going to deal with this? Meaning, isn’t it going to be a hassle for me? …There’s no way I can laugh about it like Granny.

Still, I couldn’t just keep avoiding it forever. So, I took a deep breath, mustered up my courage, and turned around…

“What’s she doing?”

That’s all that came out of my mouth.

“Keep it up, miss!”

“Don’t fall down!”

“If you need help carrying heavy stuff, just let us know!”

For some reason, at the edge of the square where the cooking was taking place, in a part of the main street slightly removed from the square, there were some boxes piled up, and in front of them, some slightly emaciated but relatively healthy-looking citizens had gathered and were shouting.

And as for Lilia…

“Thank you, everyone!”

Balancing precariously while carrying an armful of cloth, Lilia responded to the voices of the citizens.

Wondering what she was going to do with such a large amount of cloth, I watched as Lilia began to spread it out over the boxes.

That’s when I realized what she was doing. Well, I still didn’t know why she was doing it, but at least I understood what she was doing, sort of.

But well, with that, the “stage” was set.

“This should do it!”

Lilia struck a triumphant pose on the stage, while the crowd cheered in response.

…Seriously, what is going on?